Self-loading car



Oct. 12 1926. 1,602,779

W. PROCKTER SELF LOADING CAR Filed Dec. 14. 1925 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 ATTORNEYS l VE TOR a Rumi lw..

Oct. 12 1926. 1,602,779

W. PROCKTER SELF LOADING GAR Filed Deo. 14, 192s s sheets-'sheet` 2 :Fbi/fof@ ZB.

ATTORNEYS W. PROCKTER oct. 12, 192e. l 1,602,719

SELF LOADING CAR Filed Dec. 14, 1925 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 i l Ws) Patented Oct. 12, 1926. i l

UNITED STATES WALTER PROCKTER, HUNTINGTON, WEST VIRGINIA.

SELF-LOADING can.

Application led December 14, 1925. Serial No. 75,398.

This invention relates to a self-loading carespecially adapted for use in mines such as coal mines or in metal mining operations.

The object of the invention is to provide a self-loading car of such character that when a plurality of such cars are used in a train they can be successively loaded without the necessity of a. constant shifting of the cars to and from the face or place from which the material is being loaded. In accordancel with the present invention the material is transported or conveyed over all of the cars to the car remote from the Place where the material is picked up and is loaded in such remote car. After the loading of the remote car has been completed the car next remote from the place where material is picked up is loaded and this operation is repeated until all of the cars have been loaded. In loading each car the material is piled up in the body of the car throughout the entire length thereof.

In carrying out the present invention there is provided a self-loading car having any desirable type of car body, a conveyor mounted on the car designed to carry the material along 4and over the top of the car and an adjustable material support also mounted on the car and associated withthe conveyor and adapted to be positioned to cause the material to be carried overf the car body or to be positioned to cause the material to discharge into the car body at the desired point. In conjunction with the conveyor and adjustable material support there is provided at one end .of the car material-receiv` ing means designed to receive material from an adjacent car. At the opposite end of each ear therey is rovided material discharge means designed) todeliver the material to the receiving means on' the adjacent end of the adjacent car. I l

Other objects and advantages reside in certain novelfeatures of the construction,

arrangement and combination of parts which `will be hereinaftermore fully described and particularly kpointed out in the appendedy claims, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, and in which:

Figure 1 is a fragmentary view in side elevation showing a train made up of selfloadingcars embodying the present invention, j j

.Figure 2 is a view in transverse vertical section on the line 2-'2 of Figure 1,

Figure 5 is a longitudinal vertical section-V al view on the line 5--5 of Figure 3,

Figure 6 isa view in longitudinal vertical section on the line 6 6 of Figure 3,

Figure 7 is a diagrammatic perspective view showing the drive for the adjustable or shiftable material support,

Figure 8 is a detail view partly in section and partly in elevation showing one of the clutching elements employed in the driving mechanism for the adjustable material support, and

Figure 9 is a detail perspective view of the discharge means provided on one end of each car. 4

Referring to the drawings it will be seen that the present invention comprises a selfloading car, a number of which may be coupled up `in a train, as shown in Figure 1, one of such cars being designated at A, another at B and a third at' C. The cars A, B and C are of identical construction and each includes a carbody 1 having suitable running gear including wheels 2 protected and guarded by guards 3.

The present invention proposes the provision of a- -conveyon designated generally at 5, and'including endless sprocket chains 6v and spaced flights or cross members 7 of angular form, the cross members 7 bein connected to and carried by the sprocket chains 6.

VIn the present embodiment of the invention the endless chains of the conveyor have upper runs extending along and over the top of the car and having runs extending down around the ends of the car and lower ends extending below the car. The upper p runs of the sprocket chains 6 travel along in` channel guides 8` provided at the upper end of longitudinally extending framing members 9provided above the car and supported upon extensions of the endwalls ofthe body of the carp At one end ofthe guides 8 the sprocket chains 46 are trained over idler sprockets 1() and`10 and extend down along the adjacent end of the car to sprocket wheels l1. The lbottom runs of the sprocket chains 6 run along on inturned flanges 12 provided on a depending conveyor casing 13 carried by the body of the car.` At one endj of the car the casing' 13 extends up outside of the car body, as at 1a, to house and protect the end runs of the sprocket chains which travel over the sprockets 107 10u and 11. The other end of the casing 13 is eX- tended upwardly and mtfarflly bcjfcn d the car body`r as at 15 to house and protect the conveyor and in this extension 15 of the casing idler sprocket mounting;` shafts 16 are lined. The shafts 1b have rotatably fitted thereon idler sprockets 17 around which the sprocket chains 6 are trained. A drive shaft 18 is also extended through the casina` extension 15 and has drive sprockets 19 liked thereto and meshing with the Sprocket chains (i.

.An adjustable or shiftable material support is provided for co-operation with the conveyor in order to cause the material to be carried entirely over the car or to be discharged at the desired point within the car. This adjustable material support consists in the present embodiment of the invention of a plurality or series of transversely e1;- tendinu slats Q() connected together for simultaneous movement by means of endless chains 2l and supported by means of angular lugs 22 and rollers 23 on tracks 24 provided on the longitudinal supportinga frame members 9. Each end of each slat 2O has a` bracket secured thereto and each bracket 2:2 rotatably supports a roller 23. The rollers 23 at one side roll on o ne track 24, whereas, the rollers on the other side roll en similar tracks. vT acks 24 are extended along` the top of the car and such portions of the track are, as indicated, mounted ou the supporting members 9. At one end of the car the tracks 24 extend downwardly and outwardly, as indicated at 25, and then downwardly and inwardly as indicated at QG. The portions 2G of the track may be constituted by end wall portions of the car body and merge into the bottom wall 27 thereof. Below the bottom wall 27 tracks 2S are provided and serve to accommodate the rollers 23 of that portion of the adjustable material support that is shifted to a position beneath the car body. At one end of each car material-receiving means is provided andconsists of an inclined and im- `perforate plate 30 mounted on the iii-red shafts 1G. The nights, or cross members 7 of the conveyor ride across this plate 80 vand piek up the material deposited thereon and carry it from thev plate ont-o the adjustable `inateri{1l-receiving` support. If this adjustable material-receiving support is positioncd to extend over the entire length of the car the material is carried entirely over the car and delivered onto the material-receivingfmeans of the next car by means of a discharge or delivery mechanism, desienated generally at 35, and consisting ofka chute or bucket having a bottom wall 3G and side walls 37, the ends of the bucket or chute being' opened. This bucket or chute has bearings 38 fixed thereto, as at 39, and rotatably mounted on the shaft 9 on which the idler sprockets 9 are mounted. The rotatable or pivotal mounting,r of the buckets or chutes permits them to be swung to the inoperative position shown in dotted lines in Figure 1.

Means is provided for continuously dri ving' the conveyor 5 while the car is in opera` tion. This means may include an electric motor si() `geared to the shaft 18 by means of reduction gearing; l1 (see Fig. l).

For the purpose of drivingthe adjustable material support in either direction suitable motion transmission means is provided between the shaft 18 and a shaft 4-5 which has drive sprocket wheels 4G fixed thereon and meshed with the chains 21 connected to the slats 20 which make up the adjustable material support. This motion transmission means includes a shaft 5() aligned with the shaft 18 and adapted to be driven therefrom by means of a clutch made up of a clutch member 51 fixed on the shaft 5% and a clutch member ail splined on the shaft 5l). rlhe shaft has fixed thereto a sprocket wheel 53 over which a sprocket chain is trained. The sprocket chain is also trained over a sprocket wheel 55 fixed on the shaft V'ilhen the clutch members 51 and 52 are engaged the shaft 4:5 is driven in one direction. l? or the purpose of driving' the shaft 45 in an opposite direction a shaft 56 is provided and is driven in an opposite di rection from the shaft 18 by means of gears 57 and The shaft 56 has a clutch member 58 fixed thereto and (fo-operable with a movable clutch member 59 splined on the shaft (i0 aligned with the shaft 5G. The shaft GO has a sprocket wheel 61 fixed thereto, a sprocket chain (32 being splined over the sprocket wheel Gl and over a sprocket wheel G3 fixed on the sh aft 45.

A single control means may be provided for the two clutches made up ofthe clutch members 51 and 52 and 58 and 59. This con` trol mechanism includes a hand lever 70, pivoted as atv 71, on the side of the car and having a hand grip released andfspring set detent 72 co-operable with the recesses or teeth on a quadrant 73. A rod 75 is pivotally connected tothe hand lever at one end and to a rocking lever 76 at its other end, the rocking` lever being fulcrumed, as ati777 on the side of the car. A rod 78 is v pivotally connected to the rocking lever 76 at the end of the lever opposite its connection to the lever and this rod 78 is pivotally connected to one arm of a bell crank leverv 79. The bell crank lever 79 isv fulcrumed, as at 80, on the car and has an arm S1 pivotally connected at its outer end to a rod 82 pivotally connected to a forked lever 83 which .controls the clutch member 59. The outer end of the arm 81 is also pivotally connected to an arm of the bell crank lever S4, an arm of which is pivotally connected to a rod 85 connected to the forked lever 86 which controls the clutch member 52. With this arrangement when the lever is swung to the right, as viewed in Figure l, the adjustable material support is shifted to the left; whereas, when. the lever is Ashifted to the left, asyviewed` in `Figure 2, the `adjusable ymaterial.support is shifted to the rig it.

ln loading a train of cars constructed in accordance' withthe present invention the delivery or discharge means 35 of each Vcar of the train except the car remote from the material to be loaded are swung, as shown in full lines in Figure l, so that they will discharge or deliver the material onto the plates 30. At the start of the operation the adjustable supports of all of the cars eX- cept the car remote from the material to be loaded are arranged to extend below the upper run of theconveyors 5 for the full lengths of the cars. With this arrangement when the conveyors 5 are driven the mate rial is carried over the first car to the Sec'- ond car, over the second car to the third car, and so on until it reaches the car remote from the material to-be loaded in to ywhich car it is delivered, the adjustable material support being shifted to effect this purpose. The adjustment of the. adjustable material support is illustrated in Figure 1 incon` nection with the car B. `Figure l shows the car B being loaded, the car C having been loaded. The loadingof the car C is effected by gradually shifting the material support to the left so that the material carried along the slats 20 of the support by the flights 7 falls into the body of the car olf the end of the support. As the material support is gradually driven around over the car the loading of the material into the car progresses from one end of the car to the other. In this way, first one and then another car may be loaded without shifting the train or any of the cars thereof.

I claim l. A self-loading car having a body, a

conveyor mounted on the car and designed to carry'the material along and over the top of the car, and an adjustable material support also mounted on the car and associated with the conveyor' and adapted to be posi tioned to cause thematerial to be carried over the car body and also adapted to be positioned to cause the material to discharge into the car body at the desired point.

2. ,A self-loading car having a body, a conveyor mounted on the car and designed to carry the material along and over the top of the car, an adjustable material support also mounted on the car and associated with the conveyor Aand adapted to be positioned to cause the material to be carried over the car body and also adapted tobe positioned to cause `the material to discharge into the car body at the desired point, material receivingl means at one end of the car, and material discharge means at the other end of the car.

3. A self-loading rar having a body` a conveyor'mounted on the car and designed toicarry the material along and over thetop of the car, means for continuously driving the conveyor in one direction, an adjustable material' support also mounted on `the car andassociated with the conveyor and adaptedto be positioned to cause the material to be `carried over the car body and also adapted'tobe positioned to cause the material `to discharge into `the car body'atthe desired point, and controllable means for shifting the adjustable material support in either direction.

Y- .4. A self-loading car havinga body, ia con` veyor andincluding a plurality- Vof trans!V versely extending slats over which the 'conveyor flights run, means for `interconnectingtheslats for simultaneous movement, and meansifon supporting the yslats in all positl0I1S.." L y1 Y 5. A self-loadingfcar havinga` body, a conveyor madeup. of endless sprocket chains and transverse flights connected to the chains at spaced intervals, Amounting means for supporting the conveyor on the car whereby a run of the conveyor extends over the car for the full length thereof, and adjustable materal support co-operable with the conveyor and including a plurality of transversely extending slats over which the conveyor iights run, means for interconnecting the slats for simultaneous movement, means for supporting the slats in all positions and including tracks carried by the' mounting means and by the car body, rollers running on the tracks, and offset brackets connecting the rollers and the slats.

6. A self-loading car having a body, a conveyor mounted on the body and having a run extending over the body for the full lengththereof, said' conveyor having spaced transversely extending flights, an adjustable material support also mounted on the car body and shiftable to co-act with the conveyor to cause the material to be carried entirely over the car bodyand also shiftable so as to co-act with the conveyor to cause the material to be discharged' into the car body at .the desired point, material-receiving means including an inclined plate cio-operatively disposed with respect to the conveyor and the adjustable material support, and 1naterial-discharge means at the end ot the car opposite said material-receiving means.

7. A self-loading car having a body, a conveyor mounted on the body and having a run extending over the body for the full .length thereof, said conveyor having spaced transversely extending flights, an adjustable material support also mounted on the car body and shiitable to co-act with the con veyor to cause the material to be carried entirely over the car body and also shiftable so as to co-act with the conveyor to cause the material to be discharged into the car body at the desired point, material-receiving means including an inclined plate cooperatively disposed with respect to the conveyor and the adjustable material support, and materialdiscl1arge means yat the end of the car opposite said material-receiving means,` said material discharge means including a pivoted chute.

8. A self-loading car having a body, a conveyor including a pair of endless sprocket chains, mounting members extending longitudinally of the car and having guides for supporting the upper runs of said chains in overlying relation with respect to the car Jfor the full length of the car, a housing having a portion underlying the "bottom of the car and port-ions extending up along the sides of the car, saidcasing having means for guiding and supporting end and bottom runs ot the sprocket chains, transverse flights connected With the chains and carried thereby at spaced intervals therealong, an adjustable material-support including a plurality of transversely eXtending slats over which the flights oit the conveyor run, endless chains connecting the slats, means for mounting the endless chains on the support, means for driving the chains to shift the support, and means for mounting the slats for shifting movement on the mounting members and on the casing.

9. A self-loading car having a body, a continuously operable conveyor mounted on the car body and having a run extending` over the car body for the full length ol the car body, and a longitudinally shittable material support mounted on the car and cooperable with the conveyor to the end oli causing the material to be carried entirely over the car `body and also co-operable with the conveyor to the end oit causing the 1naterial to be discharged intofthe car body at the desired point.

l0. A self-loading car having` a body, a conveyor, means adjacent the ends of the car for mounting the conveyor on the car body with a run oi" the conveyor extending over the car body 'for the full length of the car body, means for driving the conveyor, and means independent ol the conveyor and its mounting means t'or causing the conveyor to discharge the material carried by the run extending over the car body to any point within the car body and also operable to cause the run extending over the car body to carry the material entirely over the car body.

WALTER PROCKTER. 

